Garrett's Games and Geekiness

Shelley and I get a couple of indispensable expansions to the table for two games we've enjoyed in the past: Altiplano + the Traveler Expansion by Reiner Stockhausen along with Stefan and Louis Malz from dlp Games and Santa Maria + the American Kingdoms expansion by Eilif Svensson and Kristian Amundsen Ostby from Aporta Games

Shelley and I do some post-Tahoe hiking gaming, looking at a new expansion Concordia Venus by Mac Gerts from PD Verlag and then have a great time with our blinged out and expanded  Orleans by Reiner Stockhausen from TMG and dlp Games

Shelley and I spend some time with two games we turned out not to like very much: 3x8 by Christian Fiore and Knut Happel from Amigo which is a card game with a race element  and Copenhagen (Deluxe Edition) by Asger Harding Granerud and Daniel Skjold Pedersen from Queen Games in which players collect card sets to build the frontages of buildings with Tetris-style pieces.  

Shelley and I have a great time with the new dice-filled version of  Sushi Roll by Phil Walker-Harding from Gamewright and then work hard to get the proper raw materials to build our  Tiny Towns by Peter McPherson from AEG  

Shelley and I have a great time with two shorter games this week (as the school year comes to a close!). The first games is another roll & write with a solid twist: Hex Roller by Rustan Håkansson from Renegade Games Studio and Frosted Games Followed by our chance to play wicked witches capturing fairytale characters while building our Gingerbread House by Phil Walker-Harding from Lookout Games  

Something a bit different on this week's episode as one of my current students - Harrison - joins me for a discussion of this week's first game Among Thieves by Floyd Pretz from Indie Boards & Cards then Shelley jumps back on the mics with me for a discussion of the sequel to Ganz Schon Clever Doppelt So Clever or Twice as Clever by Wolfgang Warsch from Stronghold Games

Ted Alspach joins me over the Skype airways for a discussion of Bezier Games' growth as a company as well as their new forthcoming title: SILVER along with discussions of CABO Suburbia: Collector's Edition and some of his other favorites that he's recently played or would love to re-publish.  

Shelley and I delve into a new twist on card drafting and resource building in  Hadara by Benjamin Schwer from Hans im Gluck and then have a lot of fun with an awesome twist on the area majority Carcassonne-like mechanisms of  Pandoria by Jeffrey Allers and Bernd Eisenstein from Iron Games

Shelley and I first hike through nature, painting beautiful scenes and fulfilling commissions in Sunset Over Water by Steve Finn, Eduardo Baraf, and Keith Matejka from Dr. Finn's Games and Pencil First Games then we head to another planet to explore an ancient civilization in our turtle-shaped research vehicles, while winning over influence of our admin and science teams in Magnastorm by Bauldric...

Shelley and I spend the week drafting cards, building our lands, and borrowing each other's actions in Key Flow by Richard Breese, Sebastian Bleasdale, and Ian Vincent from R&D Games and then we head to Chile to trade and plan the actions of our workers in Valparaiso by Stefan and Louis Malz from dlp Games  

Designer and raconteur Tony Boydell (of Snowdonia & Guilds of London fame) joins me for a conversation about game design, jaded gamers, and his own Top 10 from the past year. Here's his list: The Mind Eco-Links VOLT Holding On Airship City Gingerbread House Symphony No. 9 Endeavor: Age of Sail Tales of the Northlands AuZtralia

Shelley and I spend some time looking through the games we've played and select our Top 10, as well as Honorable Mentions and games that just aren't for us! Shelley's Lists: Not For Her = Reef and Century: Eastern Wonders Honorable Mentions = Let's Make a Bus Route, Facecards, Illusion, Trapwords, and Teotihuacan: City of Gods 10) Walking in Burano 9) Carpe Diem 8) Crusaders: Thy Will Be Done 7) A...

Shelley and I train our students and gain knowledge by wandering around Europe in Newton by Simone Luciani and Nestore Mangione from Cool Mini or Not and Cranio Creations then attempt to thwart the evil intentions of Nogbad, create wondrous Inventions, and show our heroism by completing Sagas in  Tales of the Northlands: The Sagas of Noggin the Nog by Nick Case from A-Muse-Ment

Shelley and I work hard to gain favor and move up the ranks in Henry VIII's court in  Tudor by Jan Kirschner from Academy Games and then get out our binoculars and play amateur ornithologists in  Wingspan by Elizabeth Hargrave from Stonemaier Games

Shelley and I build pastel buildings as we wander through the beautiful Venetian island of Burano in Walking in Burano by Wei-Min Ling from EmperorS4 and then create fantasy islands and try to score the most points in doing so in Skylands by Shun from Queen Games

Shelley and I race to build the best fleet of space ships and send them out into the void in  Space Base by John D. Clair from AEG and then send our crusading knights across Europe to defeat the heathen hordes in Crusaders: Thy Will Be Done by Seth Jaffee from Tasty Minstrel Games

Shelley and I get a chance to preview the forthcoming Bezier Games' title  Cabo by Mandy Henning and Melissa Limes from Bezier Games and then have fun burning our brains, building a pyramid, and attempting to earn the gods' favors in Teotihuacan: City of Gods by Daniele Tascini from NSKN Games

Shelley and I take on 2 titles that start with F, but vary markedly in their play and fun value! Fuji by Wolfgang Warsch from Feuerland Spiele had us running (unsuccessfully) from Fuji's volcanic eruption...and not enjoying the experience. and Futuropia by Friedemann Friese from Stronghold Games has us working to create a utopian condominium experience where food and energy are provided by robots...

This week Shelley and I enjoy some sand castle building from Stronghold Games, then have a bit less fun (possibly due to playing it 2-player) trying to win the favor of the Emperor. Fine Sand by Friedemann Friese from Stronghold Games and Gugong by Andreas Steding from Game Brewer

Shelley and I become competing gods as we build separate worlds with worshippers in pyramids for Orbis by Tim Armstrong from Space Cowboys and 5x5 City by Hisashi Hayashi from Okazu Brand

Shelley and I start off with lighter fare as we draft, then place polyominoes in Polyssimo Challenge by Alain Brobecker from Djeco and then try to win favor and protect our interests in Portugal in Coimbra by Flaminia Brasini and Virginio Gigli

Shelley and I head to Japan to duke it out as competing companies building our power and influence in  Yokohama Duel by Hisashi Hayashi from Okazu Brand and then head under the sea as environmental problems have forced humanity to build Underwater Cities by Vladimir Suchy from Delicious Games

Shelley and I have some fun as competing space agencies in 1950's inspired artwork of Lift Off by Jeroen Vandersteen from Hans im Glück and then explore uncharted forest where monsters roam and rewarding artifacts can be obtained in The Boldest by Sophia Wagner from Stronghold Games

Shelley and I have more fun with a roll & write polyomino game, then a fantastic time building our ancient Roman colonies. Brikks by Wolfgang Warsch from Schmidt and Forum Trajanum by Stefan Feld from Stronghold Games

Shelley and I check out a quick filler and a solid family game from well-known designers: Trellis by Teale Fristoe from Breaking Games and  Okavango by Michael Kiesling and Wolfgang Kramer from Jumbo